Story
Write the first paragraph of your page here. Treatment WHAT HAPPENED TO GEORGE? Trawl through the relics from the mysterious disappearance of a man who woke up to a reality none of us can even dream of. '' Our concept is taken from Ray Nelson’s short story ''http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Nelson%7CEight O’Clock and our project will focus on expanding the events after George’s death. ‘One of the subjects awoke all the way. This had never happened before. His name was George Nada and he blinked out at the sea of faces in the theatre, at first unaware of anything out of the ordinary’ '' ''(Eight O'Clock, Ray Nelson)'' The original story does not flesh out George as a character outside his situation of awakening. In this respect, we reveal George’s origin story by framing him as an ordinary man who is thrust into an entirely new reality. We plan on using Tumblr for this aspect of the world, and have maintained consistent posts which gives an ordinary picture of his life in the lead up to his awakening and disappearance. ‘George did not live to see the victory that finally came’ '' ''(Eight O'Clock, Ray Nelson)'' The blog will link to a number of other important tent pole pieces of media that build upon the world and further the story arc. The work is contextually important as it touches thematically on issues that are marketable to an active online audience through it’s subtle nods to conspiracy theories, privacy in the online sphere, government censorship etc. It also points at the mass media and how the elite use the media in order to control humanity. “Our impulses are being redirected. We are living in an artificially induced state of consciousness that resembles sleep. (…) The poor and the underclass are growing. Racial justice and human rights are non-existent. They have created a repressive society, and we are their unwitting accomplices. Their intention to rule rests with the annihilation of consciousness. We have been lulled into a trance. They have made us indifferent to ourselves, to others. We are focused only on our own gain. Please understand. They are safe as long as they are not discovered. That is their primary method of survival. Keep us asleep, keep us selfish, keep us sedated.” (They Live – 1988 film adaptation of Eight o’clock in the Morning) The other major components of the project are connected to the blog and form a multiplicity of pathways and viewpoints from which to view the project. There is no defined pathway and users can enter from any element and trawl through archives as much as they want to in order to form on overall picture of the timeline and key events. This is a simplistic outline of the key pieces of media and how they connect. We anticipate the hypnotists website will act as the primary entry point, as it is the element that we are advertising as the starting point of the project. Here is an early mock up of the design which aims to heighten the mystery surrounding the return of our hypnotist character Nelson Ray. The hypnotist is a derived character and does not exist in the original story. We took ideas from the original story and decided to build a character from the prominent themes of hypnotism and being awake versus being asleep or under a spell. “No,” he said. “I mean really wake up.” She looked at him without comprehension, so he snapped his fingers and shouted, “Wake up! The masters command that you wake up!” (Eight O'Clock, Ray Nelson) We have pulled out the major plot points from the story as well as refashioning them and creating our own. The major plot point is the awakening of George, which is happening, simultaneously with the return of the hypnotist. The two remain unconnected until the documentary students act as the catalyst that connects the two story threads. We felt that by including the documentary students, it would make the project more accessible to a range of users and enhance their experience of the story as it provides a commentary on the events as they unfold. Another important aspect of the transmedia story is Lily’s blog that she starts up after George goes missing. This is an important artefact as it continues the story from George’s point of view and as the information comes out, Lily remains as a reliable source who has been accidently caught up in the unfurling drama. This blog gives audiences following the events a space which links back to the entire narrative of the story to see the plot points they may have misinterpreted or misread. It is a good ‘tying up’ of loose ends. Lily's blog is expecially important in revealing the role of Cheif Robinson which is dicussed in the orginal story. We used this quote to help us nut out the techincal and creative elements. Transmedia relies on strong transitional elements — how do you move the audience across the many spaces? How do you remove obstacles? How do you get them to want to overcome the obstacles you’re incapable of removing? Story bridges and rabbit holes — places they can cross knowingly or spots they can fall into the narrative unexpectedly — are necessary components to the infrastructure. Charater Nelson Ray 525171_10151475037583323_2036977582_n.jpg|Nelson Ray's comeback poster|link=www.nelsonray.net Screen shot 2013-05-20 at 11.11.48 PM.png|Nelson Ray's Twitter Profile|link=https://twitter.com/NelsonRayAwake 486873 10151486841488323 698120590 n.jpg|Nelson at his comeback show|link=www.nelsonray.net Screen shot 2013-05-20 at 11.11.09 PM.png|Nelson Ray's Website|link=www.nelsonray.net In the project, Nelson Ray was played by Thomas Reed. Here are some notes we have constructed around the character. Nelson Ray is the embodiment of an “Overnight Sensation”. From performing small obscure shows for pittance and free beers, to selling out huge auditoriums across the globe, Nelson’s rise up the ladder of fame puts him somewhere between Justin Bieber and Barrack Obama However the popularity, daytime TV appearances and multiple book deals haven’t gone to his head. Nelson still retains the soft-spoken, humble manner that he had before the packed houses of adoring fans and his whole approach to hypnosis reflects this nature. For Nelson it’s not about pulling stunts and making people do things against their will for the entertainment of others, it’s about helping people. Helping people to move past their mental demons and to show them their own potential when presented with the right opportunities and perspectives. It’s something that he maintains in his work today. At some point during his time at the top, and due to his experience in the field of perspective manipulation, Nelson became aware of the Fascinator invasion and the control they exerted upon humankind. His subsequent disappearance was a result of this discovery, and he spent most of this time researching methods to ‘wake up’ the world to the monsters that were walking among them. After months of nothing, Nelson, opting to take a different approach to it, realized that he didn’t need to wake up the whole world, just one person who would get the ball rolling. That person being George. In this sense for the story Nelson acts as an antagonistic mentor to George’s protagonist. He pushes him out of his comfort zone and forces him to confront the conflict that makes up the bulk of story. However he is antagonistic because he doesn’t help George in anyway once he’s ‘woken’ him up, he simply pushes him into the deep end of the pool, and runs off again. Post-George’s death Nelson turns to Lily and uses her search for George, again in a slightly antagonistic way, to help his own cause and spread the message. He is not a focal point of the story, but an instigator for other characters. This is a reflection on his personality: he doesn’t see himself as being important, rather his work is the most defining element of his character. Nelson Ray is not the main character, but his actions are the source and drive of the narrative. George Nada Blah Lily Saunders In the project Lily's voice was played by Zoe Davies Cupcake designer who works at her own patisserie and met George 2 years ago when he filled her cavity. ''George regularly posts photos of Lily’s creations, and posts a few photos of her. She lives in the apartment she used to share with George who moved out when she rejected his proposal. She felt that George was not ready for marriage and needed to find himself before he could be with her. After the hypnotist event George goes to their old apartment and ties her up (not shown as part of the ‘story’) Chief Robinson discovers Lily and takes her back to the police station and attempts to persuade her that the hypnotist is behind George’s insanity and his disappearance. Lily receives a tip off in the form of police audio logs and phone calls between the fascinators. From that she starts a campaign against the hypnotist because she thinks the hypnotist is behind George’s disappearance. She starts up a campaign titled WHAT HAPPENED TO GEORGE which includes posters, handouts and a running commentary on her discovery of the truth behind George's dissapearence. Screen shot 2013-05-20 at 10.53.13 AM.png|Screenshot from Lily's Blog|link=http://www.tumblr.com/blog/helpfindgeorge Screen shot 2013-05-21 at 12.01.41 AM.png|Screen Shot from Lily's Blog|link=http://www.tumblr.com/blog/helpfindgeorge helpfindgeorge.jpg|Missing Poster Lily Made|link=http://www.tumblr.com/blog/helpfindgeorge Screen shot 2013-05-21 at 9.35.35 AM.png|Audio Logs from Cheif Robinson|link=http://www.tumblr.com/blog/helpfindgeorge Sam Cummins Blah Blah Sam is awesome Blah. Zoe Annabel Blah Plot Write the second section of your page here. World Write the second section of your page here. Themes A prominent theme of our project will be the political aspects embedded within the story. Several elements in ''Eight O'clock in the Morning are suggestive of this political theme, particularly the concept of the 'Fascinators.' They are placed as the controlling entity of the environment, but in a way that is unbeknown to all other subjects in the story except protagonist George. The Fascinators remain dominant by communicating messages via commercial platforms - posters stating phrases such as "Work eight hours, play eight hours, sleep eight hours," and television programs including phrases such as "Obey the government, we are the government." This theme could be communicated in our project via a number of platforms. Posters placed around the Melbourne CBD could promote a product, with a QR code directing the viewer to an entirely different poster online, and one that conveys a political theme. Television advertisements could be created, which could include underlying messages of control similar to those of the Fascinators. Eight O’Clock in the Morning also presents very strongly the theme of rebellion. This is not just a simple rebellion, but a complex kind of ‘underdog’ rebellion in which the protagonist single handedly attempts to bring down the villainous dictators he has woken up to. There is a constant theme of the power of rebellion, tied to the underdog, good and bad, and dictatorship. Our aim is to communicate this overall rebellion theme, and the underlying themes that come with it, throughout our entire project. Each separate minisode, article, radio piece and any other aspect of our project will be centred around the invasion, and hence, the eventual rebellion of George and the other humans. This could be communicated through video podcasts posted on YouTube by George, detailing his rebellion, radio broadcasts, signage etc, all with the intent of informing others about the invasion. Different perspectives could also be included in the project. For example, George’s girlfriend could be given a backstory, which could include her ignorance of the invasion. A perspective from one of the Fascinators could be included, with a sole focus on the purpose of the invasion, and the expression of fear at the thought of rebellion. These could also be communicated through video, audio, and signage. A perspective from one of the Fascinators also opens up the possibility of including communication between the Fascinators, be it via radio transmission, or text written in code, that must then be decoded by the user. Scripts Write the second section of your page here.